Stem cells

• One medical use of stem cells is well established: this is the use of stem cells from bone marrow in transplants to provide a supply of new blood cells for the person receiving the transplant. This is used to treat leukaemia.
• Stem cells for research may be based on: • stem cells from embryos that are a few days old • adult stem cells from selected parts of the body such as bone marrow • fetal stem cells taken from blood in the umbilical cord.
• Embryonic stem cells can develop into any of the many types of cells in the body. Adult stem cells can only give rise to the types of cells found in the tissues that the adult stem cells come from.
• Most medical uses of stem cells are still experimental. Treatments based on stem cells are being investigated for treating diseases such as: • heart disease – using the patient’s own stem cells from bone marrow • Type 1 diabetes – using embryo or fetal stem cells.
• The properties of stem cells are not fully understood. Scientists do not yet know how their differentiation is controlled. This means that there is a fear that their ability to proliferate could lead to cancer when they are transplanted into a patient.